


Drawing of the Past

by EggsEgghead



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Backstory, Child Death, Dungeons & Dragons Character Backstory, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:15:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25839436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EggsEgghead/pseuds/EggsEgghead
Summary: A night of rest and recuperation takes a somber turn as Galahad unintentionally learns about the ghosts that haunt Lilith's past.
Relationships: Original D&D Character(s)/Original D&D Character(s)





	Drawing of the Past

Lilith and Galahad hadn't traveled far from Ravenwood in quite some time. To celebrate their arrival in the new town, they headed straight to the closest tavern for drinks, a welcome respite from the days they had spent on the road. Though the trip here was relatively peaceful, it had become a habit of theirs to recuperate for a night with a few drinks and each other's company.

The two always sat at the bar, as per Lilith's request. She always wanted to sit at the bar or somewhere close enough. Anywhere where plenty of eyes would drift in her general direction. Galahad watched, amused, as drinks came pouring in from patrons all around the tavern, men yearning for some of Lilith's time. She played coy, thumbing through her spellbook to appear preoccupied but graciously accepting every drink brought her way. Sometimes she would discreetly slide one Galahad's way, giving him a grin before turning back to her tome. Galahad had watched the same routine dozens of times and it never got any less entertaining.

After a while, the flow of free liquor slowed to a trickle before stopping all together. By then, the two had drank their fill and simply sat together, side by side, at the bar. They talked idly with one another, sharing drunken remarks and tipsy compliments. Lilith all but abandoned her studies but she left her spellbook open to a particularly strange page. The paper was splattered slightly with dried blood. Galahad tried not to think of what spell might be scrawled on the pages in handwriting that wasn't Lilith's usual, flowing script. Admist the pages, he noticed the corner of a loose paper sticking out from the rest. He couldn't make out what was on the page, but the corner was crumpled and slightly torn, yellowed slightly from age and lightly dirtied. He could tell just from looking that Lilith had been holding onto it for a while. A long while. Lilith didn't seem to notice it, she never tucked it back into place. He figured it was simply just another part of her notes, maybe additional information on a spell.

"Well," Lilith yawned loudly and stretched her arms over her head, "I think I'm going to lie down now. I'm starting to get tired. Are you coming?"

Galahad thought for a moment before nodding. "That's probably a good idea, it's getting late."

Lilith gave Galahad a sleepy, drunken grin as he stood from his seat and helped her down from hers. Haphazardly, Lilith gathered her tome from the bar in a swift, albeit careless, motion. The pages fluttered from the movement before the book shut in her hands, the magical clasp sealing on its own. Galahad noticed a flutter of movement as Lilith started for the stairs and he watched as a paper drifted to the ground where Lilith was standing. Galahad knelt down to retrieve it, looking up to find Lilith already heading up the stairs before disappearing from view.

Turning the page over in his hands slowly, Galahad stood. The page had fallen with the blank side up and he had expected to see notes on the other side. Instead, he saw a childish, lovingly drawn picture of a family. Three people were depicted. Galahad's eyes immediately moved over to the most familiar figure. Despite the age and dirt on the page, he could easily tell this first figure was Lilith. It had the same long, black hair and grey skin. Above her head was the word 'Mommy' written in a child's hand. Beside her was a smaller person, her height presumably corresponding with her age. The second figure had orangey hair, braids depicted by a series of circles. Above this figure's head was the word 'Me' in the same handwriting. The final figure was another unfamiliar one. This one was taller than the other two. It had shoulder-length brown hair and the word 'Daddy' was written above. Galahad stared down at the picture for another moment before turning the page back over in his hands, looking for anything on the other side. Beneath a stubborn patch of dirt was the name 'Ophelia' and, beneath that, the date that the drawing was presumably made. It had been drawn about 30 years ago.

Galahad turned his eyes back up towards the stairs, looking to see if Lilith had come to retrieve her missing page, but she was nowhere to be seen. By this point, Lilith was probably getting ready for bed, she wouldn't be coming back down. Galahad headed in the direction of the stairs and followed the hallway to where his and Lilith's room was. He hesitated at the door for a moment before going in, closing the door behind him. His back was to Lilith when she spoke to him.

"There you are. I was wondering what was taking you so long." Lilith's voice came closer as she approached. Her arms slipped around Galahad from behind and he felt her lips press against the back of his neck.

She seemed at ease, blissfully unaware of what Galahad had found. For a moment, he considered dropping the topic. He could sneak the drawing back into her tome while she slept and she could rest easy thinking that her secret was safe. But he couldn't. Not because he wanted answers but because he wouldn't feel right keeping the secret from her. Besides, by now, he knew how her spellbook worked. He wouldn't be able to open it, it was magically sealed. In the morning, she would know he had seen it. It was best that he brought it to her attention now.

"You dropped something downstairs, I grabbed it for you." Galahad's eyes strayed down to the drawing in his hands again.

Lilith's arms loosened around him before she pulled back. "I did? I didn't notice. What is it?"

Galahad hesitated before he turned. He held the drawing out for Lilith to take. He watched her eyes shift from his to the paper and saw how her sleepy contentment shattered away to reveal a sad, empty stare.

"...Oh." Lilith didn't reach out for the drawing right away. Instead, her eyes stayed glued to it, examining the colors and shapes with a gentle sadness. The longer she stared, the deeper that sadness grew, Galahad watched as her dry eyes became glassy, rolling back for a moment to maintain some semblance of composure. After several long, wordless moments, Lilith eventually took the paper with soft fingers. Galahad noticed the way her hands shook as she reached out.

There were no words as Lilith turned her back to Galahad. He watched her cross the room with reluctant strides and stop next to the table she had left her spellbook on. When her fingers hit the cover, he noticed the magical shimmer that surrounded it dissolve, and Lilith opened the book to a random page. She put the drawing down carefully, running her hands over the paper to smooth out any wrinkles. Slowly, she closed the cover of her spellbook, letting the magical lock seal it closed once again. It took Lilith another few moments before she pulled her hand from the cover and started for the bed. She sat down on the edge and waited patiently as Galahad joined her.

Lilith stared down at the floor in a desperate attempt to avoid Galahad's gaze. She knew he was looking at her, she could feel his eyes, she just couldn't bring herself to face him. Not yet, at least. Galahad watched her wring her hands slowly, her leg bouncing up and down anxiously as she watched the blank space on the ground in front of her. After a moment of deliberation, he reached over and let his hand fall to rest on her thigh, the bouncing of her leg calming to a slight jump. Lilith's eyes turned to Galahad's hand before she followed the line of his arm up to his shoulder, then shifting her gaze up higher to meet his eyes.

"You're probably expecting an explanation, aren't you?"

"I wasn't expecting anything from you. It's your business to share, if you want, I'm just here to support you."

Lilith smiled faintly, sadly, before her eyes dropped again, back to the ground. "I don't know where to start. I...try not to think about it very much but…"

A silence grew when Lilith's voice trailed off. She slowly mulled over what to say next and Galahad waited quietly for her to continue, if she wished.

Eventually, Lilith found her voice again and continued. "That picture was drawn for me by my daughter, Ophelia. Her father and I...we...we weren't on the best of terms. We co-parented. It...It's a long story, we didn't get along after a while, but we stayed together for Ophelia's sake.

"She was such a bright girl. She had so much promise, I knew she would do amazing things. She was smart, she was a quick, creative thinker. She took the best qualities from her father and I and refined them, it was...amazing to watch her learn, to see her interact with her surroundings." Lilith's smile grew but carried with it a deep sadness that made Galahad's heart wrench. The hurt she felt was almost tangible in that small smile of hers, her eyes carrying a lot of that emotion.

"We... _ I _ lost her. Lost them both. Gods, it was so long ago now...my memories are foggy, I don't...remember much from that day. Or the time afterwards.

"We were traveling north to visit my father when it happened. The ground shook and tore open and we...it separated us from Ophelia. She was stranded in the middle of the chasm, it felt like miles between us but now I know the gap wasn't that big. Matt and I...we...when the dust settled we argued. We always argued.

"He wanted to jump the gap, grab Ophelia, and jump back. I told him he was insane, I knew he wouldn't make it but he wouldn't listen. He never did… He told me he would at least try, that if I was any good as a mother I would do the same. My last words to him were me calling him a fucking idiot. He ignored me, just like he always did..." Lilith's voice finally wavered, cracked as she re-lived the experience again through her words. A trembling hand came up to her face to wipe away the tears in her eyes. "I was right. He fell to his death. Ophelia cried for him and I did what I could to try to help her but I...I couldn't be by her side. I'm her  _ mother, _ it's my  _ job _ to comfort her and I couldn't even give her that...not from so far away.

"I don't know how many days passed. I sat on the edge of that chasm calling out to Ophelia day and night, talking to her. I don't know how long it actually took for her to die. She...stopped responding eventually. By the time any help arrived, she was dead. I knew that much...she had stopped moving…" Before Lilith could continue, she was choked up by a sob. She buried her face in her hands and cried as Galahad reached over and pulled her shaking body against his. His arms wrapped tight around her, holding her close and keeping her protected in his embrace.

"What kind of mother am I? What kind of woman lets that happen to her child?" Lilith managed to choke out between her sobs.

"Lilith," Galahad's tone was gentle, carrying with it the feeling of safety. The feeling of comfort and, most importantly, love. "Look at me, beautiful."

It took a moment for Lilith's head to lift from her hands, her now bloodshot eyes meeting Galahad's. She didn't say anything but didn't object when he took her face in his hands, his thumbs sweeping across her lower lashes to brush away the tears that were building up. She reached up for Galahad's hands, her fingers wrapping around his wrists to cling to his touch, to the comfort.

"I know that it hurts but...sometimes, there's just nothing we can do. And when that happens, you have to learn and grow. Use that experience and make yourself stronger. What happened back then, that says nothing about you as a person. The outcome...well, sometimes, it's just inevitable, but instead of letting it drag you down, you need to use it to build yourself up." Galahad waited for a moment, watching to see how Lilith would react, before he continued. " _ None _ of that was your fault. You did what you could given the circumstances and even that is proof that you cared. You're not a victim, Lilith, you're a  _ survivor _ , and now you can take what happened and use it to move on and better yourself."

Lilith sat quietly and listened, sniffling and blinking away any tears that still lingered in her eyes. She stared up at Galahad, finding comfort in his eyes, before she gave him a slow nod.

Galahad's gaze softened a bit at Lilith's response. He gave her a smile that she couldn't help but return.

"Got it?" Galahad's tone had softened as well.

Lilith nodded again. "Yeah…"

"Good." Galahad pulled Lilith's head towards him and pressed a kiss to her forehead lightly. She sighed quietly, her hands sliding up from his wrists to his hands, where her fingers slipped between his and curled over his palms.

"Now, let's get to bed. It's been a long night, I'm tired." Galahad reluctantly separated himself from Lilith so he could get himself ready to lie down. She smiled as she watched him move away from her.

"You're getting old." She joked softly and found a comfortable spot in bed. Mr. Wrinkles, who had been hiding somewhere in the room, was quick to join her when he saw her lie down. He meowed softly for Lilith's attention and she murmured softly to him, showering him in affection and praise.

"Old and tired." Galahad quipped from the other side of the room as he set aside his armor and weapons. He left his gear in a neat pile on the table beside Lilith's before he joined her in bed, carefully maneuvering himself as to not disturb the little, pink mound that was Mr. Wrinkles. The fey moved regardless as Galahad shifted closer to Lilith, finding himself a comfortable place nestled against Lilith's back. He'd move back between them when they were asleep, he always did.

Lilith let herself get comfortable in Galahad's arms, her head pressed against his chest. "Gal?"

"Mhm?"

"Thank you. For listening and just...helping. It...it means a lot." Lilith mumbled quietly, her fingers idly tracing along the lines of one of his tattoos.

"That's what I'm here for, to help. I'm happy you're feeling better." Galahad responded quietly before he pressed his face into Lilith's hair. He blinked slowly and made brief eye contact with Mr. Wrinkles, who was checking to see if he had fallen asleep yet.

Lilith hummed in response but said nothing else. Her tired eyes were heavy and she didn't fight to keep them open. She was more than happy to drift off to sleep. Galahad noticed when she relaxed, the feeling of her fingers against his skin coming to a halt as her hand fell into the small space between them, curling into Lilith's chest. Galahad waited until he could hear her breathing deepen before he closed his eyes. The last thing he felt before he drifted off were tiny paws against his side and the addition of a third party curling up in the space between him and Lilith.


End file.
